There are multiple manual and motorized pallet jacks on the market. One example of such a manual jack is shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, which depict standard pallet jack 10. The jack 10 has a body 12, two pallet forks 14A, 14B extending from the body 12, two fork wheels 16A, 16B at the distal ends of the forks 14A, 14B, a steering mechanism 18, and two swivel wheels 20A, 20B operably coupled to the steering mechanism 18.
The steering mechanism 18 has an elongate member 30 and a handle 32. As best shown in FIG. 1B, the two swivel wheels 20A, 20B are coupled to the elongate member 30 of the steering mechanism 18 via a fixed axle 34, which is fixedly coupled to the elongate member 30. Each of the swivel wheels 20A, 20B rotate around the fixed axle 34. When the steering mechanism 18 is urged to the right or left by a user, thereby rotating the elongate member 30, the rotation of the elongate member 30 causes the fixed axle 34 to rotate around an axis parallel to the elongate member 30, thereby causing the wheels 20A, 20B to swivel. This action allows the user to steer the pallet jack 10.
In some rare circumstances, manual pallet jacks such as the one described above are modified to add a motor that can be used to propel the jack, thereby reducing the amount of effort required by the user. However, such modifications are unusual and there are very few commercial options available for such a retro-fitting, probably because the known commercial options are not optimal. One of the few known options is a product called the Power Pallet™, which is available from PowerHandling Inc, of Spokane, Wash. One of the disadvantages of this product is that it doesn't fit all manual pallet jacks. Another disadvantage is that the product is mounted on the front of the handle and swivel wheels of the pallet jack and extends from the front, thereby increasing the size and footprint thereof. This increase to the overall size and footprint of the pallet jack handle causes interference between the Power Pallet product on the handle and the jack itself when a user attempts to turn, thereby making it difficult to steer the jack.
There is a need in the art for an improved hub motor that is adaptable.